Cake stripping mechanism



' Aug. 2, 19 G. H. CLEM ET AL CAKE STRIPPING MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan 17, 1958 lap l.-

G. HQCLEM ErA'L cm STRIPPING MECHANISM Aug. 2, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 17, 1958 CAKE STRIPPING MECHANISM Glen H. Clem, Parkersburg, W. Va., and William M. Ickes, Marietta, Ohio, assignors to American Viscose Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Delaware Filed Jan. 17, 1958, S811. N0. 7 09,648 Claims. '(Cl. 242-53) This invention relates to apparatus for stripping yarn cakes.

"One of the oldest methods of making rayon and acetate yarns is "what is known as the pot spinning method wherein the newly formed yarn strand is led into the interior of a rapidly rotating cylindrical bucket or pot, the rotation of the pot causing the yarn strand to become deposited in layer upon layer against the inner wall thereof to form what is known as a cake." The cake is withdrawn from the bucket and wrapped in a knitted sock and then subjected to various after-treatments such as desulfurizing, deacidifying, etc, after which the sock is removed so that the yarn may be unwound from the cake and formed into a cone, or, instead of being wound into a cone, the yarn may be wound onto a beam or otherwise packaged for use in weaving or knitting machinery. The putting on and taking on of the sock, as well as the handling of the cake during the after-treatments is apt to cause a weakening of the outer layers of the yarn, so that it is customary before coming or beaming to unwind some of the yarn from the "outer portion of the cake so as to get rid of this weakened portion and this initial unwinding is known as stripping. Since some cakes may be damaged more than others, it is customary to strip off a rather generous amount of the yarn, say, for example, 300 yards, and this has been accomplished by means of an apparatus which is pre-set to Wind ofi the desired amount of yarn from the cake. In the event that the yarn strand breaks completely during the stripping operation, it has been necessary to wait for the stripping apparatus to go through its complete cycle before restarting the stripping operation, it being desired to remove from the cake a certain definite amount of unbroken yarn to insure that no damaged yarn remains in the cake.

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a cake stripping apparatus having a normal cycle of operation such that a preselected amount of yarn will be stripped from the cakewith means whereby in the event of breakage of the yarn the cycle may be manually interrupted and restarted to thus eliminate the delay in herent in the full cycling of the apparatus.

Other and further objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the description of a preferred embodiment thereof.

Referring now to the drawings:

Figure .1 is a side elevational view of the yarn stripping mechanism;

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of a portion of the mechanism shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a side elevational view showing the cycle cam and a portion of the operating means therefor;

Figure 4 is a side View of the mechanism shown in Figure 3 with certain parts being shown in section;

Figure 5 is a plan view of the main clutch showing also a .portion of the operating means therefor; and

Figure 6 is an elevational view of the handle for manu- Patented Aug. 2, 1960 ice ally resetting the cycle cam and showing the means for indicating the beginning of a cycle.

The yarn cake 10 from which a portion of the yarn is to be stripped is placed on a holder 11 and the yarn is led upwardly from the cake over a suitable guide 12 and secured to one of the arms 13 of a swift. The arms 13 are secured to a hub 14 mounted upon a. shaft extending between a pair of frame plates 15, only one of which is shown.

As indicated in Figure 2, a gear 16 is connected to the hub 14 and said gear is meshed with a gear 17, see also Figure 5, secured to "a shaft 18 upon which is rotat- -ably mounted a pulley 19 adapted to be continuously driven from a suitable source of power by a belt 20. As seen in Figure 5, a plurality of Iugs 21 extend outwardly from one side of the pulley 19 to drivingly cooperate with a corresponding number'of projections 22 provided upon a hub 23-slidably splined to the shaft 18. A flanged collar 24 is secured to or formed integrally with the hub 23 and "a "coiled spring .25 surrounding the shaft 18 and extending between the flanged collar 24 and a washer 26 pinned to the shaft normally holds the hub 23 in the position shown "in Figure 5 wherein the main clutch comprising the lugs 21 and teeth 22 is engaged to cause rotation of the shaft 18 and consequently rotation of the swift, which is geared to said shaft.

An arm 27 secured to a shaft 28 slidably mounted in a bearing 29 secured in the side plate 15 has a yoke portion 30 engaged within the groove of the grooved collar .24. A clutch operating member 31 is provided with a hub portion 32 by means of which said member is mounted for limited rotation upon the shaft 28 between the arm 27 and the bearing member 29. At its end facing the hub 32, the bearing member 29 is provided with a V-shaped notch 33 adapted to be aligned with a cooperating lug 34 of the hub 32 when the clutch operating member 31 is in clutch engaged position, as shown in Figure 5. In the non-operating position of the parts shown in Figure 5, the lug 34 is out of alignment with the notch 33 and is resting upon the outer surface 35 of the left-hand end of bearing member 29 whereby the shaft 28 and arm 27 connected thereto are carnmed toward the left, as viewed in the figure, to thereby compress the spring 25 and locate the hub 23 in clutch disengaging position. To start the machine in operation the operator presses rearwardiy upon a handle 36 secured to the end of clutch operating member 31, see Figure 1, to thereby swing said clutch operating member in a clockwise direction to align the lug 34 with the. notch 33 to thus permit the spring 25 to engage the main clutch.

The upper end of the clutch operating member 31 is provided with an extension 37 carrying a pin 38 which fits into and cooperates with a curved slot 39 provided in a plate 40 secured to one end of a plunger 41. As best shown in Figure 2, the plunger 41 is guided between the side plate 15 and a bracket 42 secured thereto. A spring 43 extending between the plunger and a pin provided in the side plate 15 urges said plunger toward the left, as shown in Figure 2. When the operator moves the member 31 to clutch engaging position, the pin 38 on the extension 37 engages an end of the slot 39 to move the plunger 41 toward the right, whereupon the spring 43 snaps a shoulder 44 on said plunger into engagement with an edge of the bracket 42 to hold said plunger in the position shown in the drawing.

The end of the plunger 41 opposite the plate 40 is operatively aligned with a cycle cam 45 adapted to be rotated through one revolution in a clockwise direction, in a manner to be presently explained, whereby upon completion of the rotation of said can-1 the plunger 4 1118 released from engagement with the bracket 421st) that the spring 43 may become effective to move said plunger and consequently rock the clutch operated member 31 in a counter-clockwise direction to disengage the main clutch. As best shown in Figures 3 and 4, the cam 45 has a helical formation and is rotatably mounted upon a bearing sleeve 46 fitted about a stub shaft 47 rotatably mounted in the side plate 15 and having a bearing with in an arm 48 secured to a bracket 49 which in turn is suitably secured to the side plate 15. A sleeve 50 is secured as by welding to the cam member 45 and to a gear member 51 forming one element of an overrunning clutch, the other element 52 of which is secured as by means of a pin 53 to the shaft 47. The overrunning clutch may be of any desired type and is shown in the drawing as comprising balls 54 mounted in cam slots 55 provided in the gear member 51. The overrunning clutch is so arranged that the shaft 47 may drive the clutch element 51 and the cam 45 in a clockwise direction 'as shown in Figure 3.

Referring again to Figure 2, a worm wheel 56 is secured to the shaft 47 and meshing with said Worm Wheel is a worm 57 secured to one end of a shaft 58 rotatable in bearings 59 and 60 suitably secured to the side plate '15. A small worm wheel 61 is secured to the end of the shaft 58 opposite the worm 57 and said worm wheel is meshed with a large diameter worm 62 rotatable upon a stub shaft 63 secured in one of the side plates 15. A gear 64 is also rotatable upon the stub shaft 63 and is 'drivingly secured to the worm 62. The gear 64 is in meshing engagement with a gear 65 secured to the swift hub 14. Thus, the cam member 45 is driven from the swift through the above described reduction gear train.

At the beginning of the stripping operation, the end of the plunger 41 rests upon the low point 66 of the cam member 45 adjacent the step 67 of said cam which separates the low point 66 from the high point 68 of said cam. When the operator moves the clutch engaging member 31 in a clockwise direction to engage the main clutch and start the swift to rotating, the pin 38 on the extension 37 pulls back on the plunger 41 to the point where the spring 43 engages the shoulder 44 behind the bracket 42. As the swift rotates it causes the cam member 45 to rotate in a clockwise direction as aforesaid and as the high point 68 of said cam member approaches the end of the plunger 41 the surface of said cam member engages the end of said plunger and moves it downward to release the shoulder 44 from latching engagement with the bracket 42, the spring 43 then holding the end of the plunger in engagement with the surface of the cam member. As soon as the high point 68 of the cam member moves beyond the end of the plunger 41, the spring 43 snaps said plunger to the left, as viewed in Figure 2, so that the end thereof again engages the low point 66 of the cam member. This movement of the plunger 41 causes the clutch operating member 31 to swing in a counter-clockwise direction and disengage the main clutch as aforesaid, tlhereby stopping rotation of the swift.

The gear ratios are such that the time required to rotate the cam member 45 through one complete revolution is the time required for the swift to unwind the desired amount of yarn from the cake 10, assuming that the yarn strand does not break. It has previously been mentioned that it is desired to strip a particular length of unbroken yarn from the cake and with the mechanism thus far described it is apparent that should the strand break during the stripping operation it would be necessary to wait for the swift to drive the cam member 45 through its complete cycle before again starting up the machine. Otherwise, should the operator manually stop the rotation of the swift at the time the strand broke and at that point re-engage the strand with the swift, the time then required to drive the cam through the remainder of its. cycle would not be sufficient to wind ofi the desired amount of yarn. To make it unnecessary to wait for the reduction gearing to drive the cam through its full cycle in the event the strand should be broken, means is provided whereby the operator may manually rotate the cam through the remainder of its revolution and bring it back to normal starting position. Meshed with the gear member 51 of the overnunning clutch is a gear 69 secured to a shaft 7%) which is rotatably supported at one end in a flange 71 provided on the bracket 49 and at the other end is supported in a bracket 72 secured to the side plate 15. At the front of the machine adjacent the main clutch operating member 31 the shaft 70 is provided with a hand wheel 73 and as the cam member 45 is rotated through the reduction gearing from the swift, the clutch gear member 51 slowly rotates the hand wheel 73 through the gear 69 and shaft 70.

Upon breakage of the strand during the stripping operation, the operator first pulls forward on the handle 36 to rotate the clutch operating member in a counter-clockwise direction to move the lug 34 of the clutch operating member 31 out of alignment with the notch 33 to thereby disengage the main clutch. This counter-clockwise.

movement of the clutch operating member 31 does not affect the plunger 41 since the pin 38 of the extension 37 of said member is free to move in the slot 39. Either before or after resecuring the strand to the swift, the operator turns the hand wheel 73 in the direction to cause the gear 69 to rotate the clutch member 51 to drive the cam member through the remainder of its cycle of revolution. The overrunning clutch between the cam member 45and the drive shaft 47 permits easy manual operation of the cam member without affecting the reduction gearing which normally drives said cam member. Since the cam member 45 cannot be easilyseen, indicating means is provided for designating the proper positioning of the hand wheel 73 for the beginning of the stripping operation. This indicating means may be in the form of alignable designations 74 and 75 on the hand wheel 73 and bracket 72, respectively.

Having thus described a preferred embodiment of the invention, what is claimed is:

1. Cake stripping apparatus comprising a swift for withdrawing yarn from a cake, drive means for rotating said swift, a clutch for connecting said drive means to said swift, means for engaging and disengaging said clutch, a rotatable cam member, means operatively connecting said cam member to said last-mentioned means whereby one complete revolution of said oam member is effective to disengage said clutch and interrupt the drive to said swift, a reduction gear train for driving said cam member from from said swift, an overnunning clutch between said gear train and said cam member whereby said oam member may be manually rotated without affecting said gear train, and manually operable means for rotating said cam member to its starting position.

2. Cake stripping apparatus comprising a swift for withdrawing yarn from a cake, drive means for rotating said swift, a clutch for connecting said drive means to said swift, manually operable means for engaging and disengaging said clutch, a rotatable cam member, means operatively connecting said oam member to said manually operable means whereby one complete revolution of said cam member is effective to disengage said clutch and interrupt the drive to said swift. a reduction-gear train for driving said cam member from said swift, an overrunning clutch between said gear train and said cam member whereby said cam member may be manually rotated without affecting said gear train, a handle located adjacent said manually operable means, and means operatively connecting said handle to said cam member whereby said handle maybe manipulated to rotate said cam member to its starting position.

3. Cake stripping apparatus comprising a swift for withdrawing yarn from a cake, drive means for rotating said swift, a clutch for connecting said drive means to said swift, manually operable means for engaging and disengaging said clutch, other means for disengaging said clutch after said swift has been rotated a preselected number of revolutions, said other means comprising a one-revolution cam, a reduction gear train operatively connecting said swift to said cam for imparting a slow speed rotary movement thereto, an overmnning clutch between said gear train and said cam, and means in dependent of said gear train for rotating said cam whereby said cam may be given its full revolution selectively Without waiting for said swift to be given its preselected number of revolutions.

4. Cake stripping apparatus comprising a swift for withdrawing yarn from a cake, drive means for rotating said swift, a clutch for connecting said drive means to said swift, manually operable means for engaging and disengaging said clutch, other means for disengaging said clutch after said swift has been rotated a preselected number of revolutions, said other means comprising a one-revolution cam, a reduction gear train operatively connecting said swift to said cam for imparting a slow speed rotary movement thereto, an overrunning clutch between said gear train and said cam, and manipulatable means for rotating said cam whereby said cam may be given its full revolution selectively without Waiting for said swift to be given its preselected number of revolutions, said manipulatable means comprising a hand wheel located adjacent said manually operable means.

5. Cake stripping apparatus comprising a swift for withdrawing yarn from a cake, drive means for rotating said swift, -a clutch for connecting said drive means to said swift, manually operable means for engaging and disengaging said clutch, other means for disengaging said clutch after said swift has been rotated a preselected number of revolutions, said other means comprising a onerevolution cam, a reduction gear train operatively connecting said swift to said cam for imparting a slow speed rotary movement thereto, an overrunning clutch between said gear train and said cam, manipulatable means for rotating said cam whereby said cam may be given its full revolution selectively without waiting for said swift to be given its preselected number of revolutions, said manipulatable means comprising a hand wheel located adjacent said manually operable means, and indicating means for showing the rotary position of said hand wheel with respect to the starting position of said cam.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,824,658 Crewdson Sept. 22, 1931 1,846,004 Green Feb. 16, 1932 1,862,188 Legge June 7, 1932 1,952,969 Breakell et a1 Mar. 27, 1934 1,986,160 Pomeroy Ian. 1, 1935 2,704,466 Way Mar. 22, 1955 2,787,691 Despard Apr. 2, 1957 

